The launch of Grand Touring 7 is surely one of the most upset that we have seen in recent times. The new installment of the Polyphony Digital saga has garnered nothing but praise from specialized critics but, as a flip side, it has been massacred by players. To the point of having become the worst-rated Sony game on Metacritic.
At the time of writing this article, Grand Touring 7 has a score of just 1.8 among the user reviews on the aforementioned platform. And there are already several days that it shows a nosedive, with several negative reviews that already borders on the absurd. Of the more than 6,600 ratings applied, 5,572 are negative, 154 are mixed, and just 904 are positive; this results in “overwhelming disgust” on the part of the public.
But how can this be possible when the vast majority of the analyzes published by the press have been tremendously positive? You can also read the one we published in hypertextual at the beginning of this month. If we are guided by what is seen in Metacritic, the overall score among critics is 87, with 104 positives, 4 mixed, and no negatives. What’s more, many media outlets have given a 100 -the maximum score- to Grand Touring 7.
The answer to why the game has such a bad reputation among the public is simple: we are talking about bombing review. It is about “punishing” developers with a bad rating to settle the disagreement with one or more decisions related to a game. This does not mean that the title itself is bad, but it does mean that there is massive discontent regarding some of its aspects.
We are not dealing with a new technique in the video game industry, but the reasons behind the case Grand Touring 7 are eye-catching.
Microtransactions, very expensive cars, and fewer credits
From the start, the players did not see with good eyes the prices incorporated by Grand Touring 7 in its microtransaction system, both when talking about game credits and purchases made with real money. The thing is the values of many of the cars included in the catalog multiplied in comparison with Grand Touring Sport.
Thus, for example, the Audi R18 TDI (2011) which cost 2.99 dollars in GT Sport, was sold for 3 million credits or 40 dollars in GT7. And in the case of “legendary” models, the situation is even worse since the price is dynamic and is in charge of the Hagerty company, which is dedicated to appraising and insuring cars in real life.
It is not surprising, then, that the McLaren F1 today is trading for well over 15 million credits, or requires an outlay of between 150 and 200 dollars to obtain it when it cost 1,000,000 credits in GT-Sport. Even so, it is clear that the disagreement of the users is well-founded, especially when they have already paid 70 dollars to make a copy of Grand Touring 7.
But the final debacle began last Thursday, March 17, with the release of a new patch (version 1.07). He included a modification in the payment that was obtained in some races; In this way, not only was the price of the cars considerably higher than in previous games of the saga, but now it was also more difficult to collect the necessary credits to buy them.
If we go back to the McLaren F1, it is estimated that after the update it would take about 30 hours to get enough credits to acquire it. A real madness, especially for how tedious that would be. But to this, it must also be added that Grand Touring 7 does not allow players to sell cars in their garage; which means that it is impossible to reinvest those credits in other models.
Grand Touring 7 was virtually unplayable for over 24 hours
And as if the update wasn’t enough of a hassle, Grand Touring 7 was more than an entire day being virtually unplayable. This was due to an issue encountered during the release of patch 1.07, which prevented the game from launching correctly. As the problem affected both PS4 and PS5, the servers had to be put into maintenance.
But what angered fans was the lack of communication during the almost 30 hours that the game was limited. What Grand Touring 7 requires an internet connection even for the single-player campaign mode, users could only access the Arcade mode while the servers were offline.
It’s no surprise, then, that the vast majority of negative reviews posted on Metacritic are from March 17 and 18—the days of the patch and game crash—onward.
Players feel they have betrayed their trust
Reviewing the criticisms that users have given to Grand Touring 7 a common feeling is observed: discomfort. “The game looks good and the gameplay is fun, but the requirement to always be online and microtransactions completely ruin it. It is clear that all decisions are made to get more money from users,” one user posted.
“I have paid £70 for the game and its content, but it is locked behind an extremely ridiculous pricing scheme, which makes the game not worth playing unless I spend days earning enough to purchase my dream cars, “said another.
“I have had and played all the Grand Touring from the first. GT7 it’s the main reason I jumped through numerous hoops to get a PS5. Polyphony Digital’s decision to push microtransactions and the requirement to always be online to even play single-player modes is downright embarrassing” added a third party.
This is just a small sample. The list of criticisms is extensive, but practically all the ones that are added go in the same tune.
Can Grand Touring 7 reverse the disappointment of the public?
Today it is difficult to know whether Sony and Polyphony Digital will be able to reverse the bad image that Grand Touring 7 has been won among the players. In recent days, Kazunori Yamauchi, CEO of the development studio, posted a message in which he apologized to players for what happened during the long period with the servers offline. And he also left some striking statements about the highly controversial microtransactions.
In Gran Turismo 7 I would like users to enjoy many cars and races, even without micro transactions. At the same time, the price of cars is a relevant element that conveys their value and rarity, so I think it’s important to link it to real-world prices. I want to make GT7 a game where you can enjoy a variety of cars in many different ways, and if possible I’d like to try to avoid a situation where a player has to mechanically keep replaying certain events over and over again.
It pains me that I can’t explain the details about this at this time, but we plan to continue to review GT7 so that as many players as possible can enjoy the game. We would really appreciate it if everyone could look at the growth of Gran Turismo 7 from a longer term point of view.
Kazunori Yamauchi, CEO of Polyphony Digital and producer of Gran Turismo
Will be able Grand Touring 7 from the reverse disappointment of the public? It is more than clear that the game has many positive aspects, both on the technical side and the playable side. However, fans feel like they’ve been hit in the pocket unceremoniously, having made an effort to buy a game that isn’t cheap in the first place.
the saga of GT has a very loyal following, and there is a feeling that Sony and Polyphony Digital must come up with something soon to show them that the release of GT7 has not been founded on the philosophy of making the most money possible in any way, whatever it takes.